Kviteseid or Kviteseidbyen is the

administrative centre An administrative centre is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune, is located. In countries with French as the administrative language, such as Belgi ...

Kviteseid Municipality Kviteseid is a municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is located in the traditional districts of Vest-Telemark and Upper Telemark. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Kviteseidbyen. Other villages in Kviteseid ...

Telemark Telemark () is a Counties of Norway, county and a current electoral district in Norway. Telemark borders the counties of Vestfold, Buskerud, Vestland, Rogaland and Agder. In 2020, Telemark merged with the county of Vestfold to form the county o ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. The village is located at the north end of the Sundkilen lake, an extension off of the main Kviteseidvatnet lake. The village of Brunkeberg lies about to the north, the village of Vrådal lies about to the south, and the village of Fjågesund lies about to the southeast. The village has a population (2022) of 791 and a

population density Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geog ...

of . The

Norwegian National Road 41 Norwegian National Road 41 (''Rv 41''; also known as the ''Telemarksveien'') is a Norwegian national road that runs through Telemark and Agder counties in Norway. The road runs between the village of Brunkeberg (Telemark), Brunkeberg in Kvitese ...

runs along the east side of the village. The village is also a boat stop along the Telemark Canal.

History

Kviteseidbyen began as a village in 1890 when the Telemark Canal opened and this site became a stopping point for the boat traffic on the canal. Prior to that, there were no urban settlements in Kviteseid. The small village grew up around the harbour due to the increased traffic in people and goods moving along the waterway. The village served as a traffic hub for a large part of the

Vest-Telemark Vest-Telemark () is a traditional district in Norway. The area comprises the western areas of the larger region known as Upper Telemark () in Vestfold og Telemark county. The region consists of six municipalities: Fyresdal, Tokke, Vinje, Nis ...

region. Soon several hotels, shuttle stations, and buildings were constructed. Craftsmen and other businesses opened up shops as well. In 1916, the "new" Kviteseid Church was built in the village to replace the Old Kviteseid Church which is located about to the south. Prior to Kviteseidbyen's establishment, the site of the old church was the main gathering place for the municipality. Kviteseidbyen has a long tradition in

butter Butter is a dairy product made from the fat and protein components of Churning (butter), churned cream. It is a semi-solid emulsion at room temperature, consisting of approximately 81% butterfat. It is used at room temperature as a spread (food ...

production. The first dairy in the village came into operation in the early 1890s, and Kviteseidbyen became known for its good butter. Early in the 20th century, the farmers in Kviteseid established their own cooperative dairy: Kviteseid Dairy. The dairy produced cheese, butter, and drinking milk.

References

{{use dmy dates, date=August 2023 Kviteseid Villages in Telemark